Srinagar, Dec 4 (IANS) J&K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Saturday reviewed the Covid-19 situation in J&K and discussed the preventive measures to be implemented against the emerging scenario.

Bengaluru, Dec 4 (IANS) Taking tough measures to contain the spread of Covid-19 and guard against its latest variant Omicron, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said on Saturday that any place with three or more Covid cases would be declared a cluster. Earlier, the minimum requirement was 10 cases.

Mumbai, Dec 4 (IANS) With Omicron cases getting detected in the two adjoining states of Karnataka and Gujarat this week, the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has introduced a set of stringent home quarantine norms, which include five calls a day and visits by medical teams with ambulance.

New York, Dec 4 (IANS) A chewing gum laced with a plant-grown protein serves as a "trap" for the SARS-CoV-2 virus, reducing viral load in saliva and potentially tamping down transmission, finds a new study.

Gandhinagar, Dec 4 (IANS) Gujarat on Saturday registered first Omicron case after a Zimbabwe resident, who arrived in Jamnagar, was found infected with Covid-19's new mutant.

Singapore, Dec 4 (IANS) As the Omicron variant has been detected in several countries, Singapore's Ministry of Health said that there is no evidence yet to suggest if the Omicron variant is more severe than other variants.

New York, Dec 4 (IANS) A team of researchers has devised a test that could measure patient immunity against multiple Covid-19 variants such as Omicron and Delta at once and inform which synthetic monoclonal antibody to use for treatments.

New Delhi, Dec 4 (IANS) More than half of those infected with the Omicron coronavirus variant in England were double jabbed, health officials have said, as the number of cases detected in the UK continues to rise sharply, The Guardian reported.

New Delhi, Dec 4 (IANS) Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Saturday said that total 12 patients are suspected of carrying Omicron variant of the coronavirus so far in the national capital. He said that all have been admitted in the isolation ward of the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital.

Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 4 (IANS) Kerala, which is already making waves on the Covid front by recording more than 60 per cent of the daily new Covid cases in the country, is now waiting with bated breath for the results of three Covid positive samples sent for genomic sequencing.

Cape Town, Dec 4 (IANS) A team of researchers in South Africa said they have found some evidence that people who had been infected once with Covid were more likely to be reinfected with the Omicron variant than with the Beta or Delta variants.

New Delhi, Dec 4 (IANS) India on Saturday reported 8,603 fresh Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours. In the same time span, a total of 415 deaths have also been reported across the nation, said the Ministry of Health and Family welfare on Saturday morning. With the addition of 415 new deaths, the death toll has climbed to 4,70,530.

Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 4 (IANS) Kerala Education Minister V. Sivankutty who has been speaking tough of strong action against those government teachers who are yet to take Covid vaccine, appears to have yielded results as just 1,707 more teachers and non-teaching staff are left to be jabbed, said the Minister on Saturday.

Bengaluru, Dec 4 (IANS) The Karnataka government is worried over the findings of the health department which show that the Omicron variant is already present in the community. The government is taking steps on war footing to deal with any eventuality, according to sources in the health department.

Washington, Dec 4 (IANS) The global coronavirus caseload has topped 264.89 million, while the deaths have surged to more than 5.24 million and vaccination to over 8.11 billion, according to Johns Hopkins University.

Bengaluru, Dec 4 (IANS) The Bengaluru based anesthesiologist doctor, one among the first two persons to be detected with the new Covid-19 variant 'Omicron' in the country is doing fine now. His primary contacts are his wife, an ophthalmologist; daughter and another doctor who is also an ophthalmologist, are also recovering well, according to sources in the health department.

Panaji, Dec 4 (IANS) The emergence of the new Covid variant Omicron will impact international tourist footfalls in Goa, the state's Ports Minister Michael Lobo has said.

Kuala Lumpur, Dec 4 (IANS) Malaysia reported another 5,551 new Covid-19 infections as of midnight Friday, bringing the national total to 2,649,578, according to the health ministry.

Ottawa, Dec 4 (IANS) Canada reported 2,538 new Covid cases on Friday afternoon, raising the cumulative total to 1,801,405 cases with 29,747 deaths, according to CTV.

Mexico City, Dec 4 (IANS) Mexico detected its first case of the Covid-19 Omicron variant in a person who arrived in the country from South Africa on November 21, the Health Ministry has said.

Budapest, Dec 4 (IANS) The Hungarian government will roll out a vaccination campaign across the country in the next six weeks, Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said.

London, Dec 4 (IANS) The UK registered 50,584 new Covid-19 infections bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 10,379,647, according to official figures released on Friday.

Bengaluru, Dec 3 (IANS) The Karnataka government, in its revised protocols after the finding of new Covid variant Omicron, has directed authorities to conduct random Covid tests on college students and school children once in 15 days.

Hyderabad, Dec 3 (IANS) Twelve more air passengers who arrived in Hyderabad from 'at risk' countries have tested positive for Covid-19 and their samples have been sent for genome sequencing, health officials said on Friday.

Srinagar, Dec 3 (IANS) Two deaths and 181 new cases were reported on Friday in J&K as Covid infection continued to surge in the Union Territory.